Case Studies: Org Topologies in Action

OT’s concepts have been tested and applied across diverse industries, addressing challenges from agile scaling to organizational silos.

Below are several case studies illustrating the context, challenges, and outcomes.

Business Banking Transformation Journey at de Volksbank

Case study: Business Banking Transformation Journey at de Volksbank

De Volksbank is a 200-year-old bank (~3,000 employees), undertook a sweeping agile reorganization to become more customer-centric and faster in delivering value. In 2022 the bank “flipped” to a new model with 14 cross-functional “Hubs” (each a business-value area with P&L responsibility integrating business, IT, and operations).

Org Topologies was used to map and assess each phase of this journey – from the pre-Agile setup, through a pilot, to the new structure – using OT’s visual org scans. This enabled the bank’s leaders to see structural bottlenecks and improvements at each step. The outcome was an aligned organization design (customer-journey teams within value hubs) and clearer insight into how the transformation affected capabilities.

The OT case analysis highlighted how the bank improved cross-unit alignment and identified further design adjustments needed to support its strategic goals.

Case Study: Studying change at de Volksbank with Org Topologies

Introduction of Org Topologies™ in European Fintech

Case study: Introduction of Org Topologies™ in European Fintech

In one European fintech (2022), Org Topologies was introduced as a way to diagnose the organization’s design and readiness for scaling.

At the time, OT was still in a draft stage, yet the fintech’s use of it “contributed to improved awareness of needed changes to org design and [generated] ideas on how to move forward”.

This case, contributed by an early adopter, showed OT’s value in surfacing hidden issues (for example, misaligned team scopes or capability gaps) even before a formal change framework was widely available. The immediate result was a set of actionable redesign ideas and increased leadership consensus on what to change, providing a clear roadmap for the startup’s next evolution.

Case Study: Introduction of Org Topologies™ in European Fintech

Studying LeSS Adoption at Poster POS Inc. with Org Topologies

Case Study: Studying LeSS Adoption at Poster POS Inc. with Org Topologies™

Poster POS Inc. (Ukraine) is a cloud-based SaaS provider for restaurants and retail (HoReCa sector).

Despite turmoil (industry COVID impact and war in 2022), Poster demonstrated resilience and sought to increase adaptability through a 2021 reorganization. Inspired by Large-Scale Scrum, they aimed for “global optimization with a whole-product focus” by moving to customer-focused feature teams.

Org Topologies was applied to analyze their transformation journey. Three OT scans were conducted: (1) the pre-LeSS structure (many component-oriented teams and siloed roles), (2) the initially envisioned LeSS-based design, and (3) the improved LeSS-like design actually implemented.

Using OT’s archetypal maps, the company identified structural drawbacks in the initial plan (e.g. areas where team design still caused bottlenecks) and corrected them before full implementation.

The result was a more cohesive “feature team” organization that aligned technology teams with customer-facing value streams. This contributed to Poster’s ability to restore profitability and even grow B2B clientele during adversity, validating that the new organization design increased adaptability and value delivery.

Case Study: Studying LeSS Adoption at Poster POS Inc. with Org Topologies

Summary

Each of these cases demonstrates OT’s real-world impact in different contexts. Common themes in outcomes include greater structural clarity, alignment of organizational shape to strategic intent, and an empowered path for continuous improvement. In large enterprises (like banking), OT helped manage complexity and maintain strategic alignment during an agile overhaul. In smaller tech firms and startups,

OT provided the blueprint to scale up effectively and address organizational bottlenecks early. Across the board, Org Topologies served as a diagnostic and design lens – revealing the root causes of challenges (e.g., fragmentation, slow delivery, misaligned teams) and suggesting structural changes to resolve them. Executives in these cases gained a fact-based view of their organization’s current state and a set of concrete options for redesign, rather than blindly adopting off-the-shelf frameworks.

Importantly, the OT approach is industry-agnostic, as evidenced by its application in finance, technology, and services, fulfilling its promise of being “wide open: it applies to Farms and Pharma, Software and Services”